Steam-piping for buildings



(No Model) 2 Sheets-Sheet EQP. OSBORNE. Y

STEAM PIPING FOR BUILDINGS;

No. 269,224. [Patented Deo. 19, 1882.

\A/l $113535; v .1 E T R (No Model.)

' 2 Shee'ts-YSh'eet 2. E. F. OSBORNE.

STEAM PIPING FOR BUILDINGS. No.'269 ,224.

Patented Dec.19, 188.2.

UNITED STATES PATEN 'r A OFFICE.

EUGENE OSBORNE, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

STEAM-PIPING FOR BUILDINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 239,224, dated December 19, 1882. Application filed April 3, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EUGENE F. OSBORNE, of St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam-Piping for Buildings; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in the equalized-pressure system of steam-piping described in LettersPatentNo. 2 1 2,320, granted to me February 18, 1879, and has for its object to provide a special form of construction of that system, adapted to situations where the supply and return pipes extend a great distance laterally, or where, in addition to such considerable lateral extension, the circulatinghead is necessarily low. By reference to said Letters Patent it will be seenthat the sealtank is connected with the steam-supply main, or preferably with the boiler, at a point back of any connections leading to a radiator, or, in other words, that all the radiators connect by both their several supply and return pipes with the equalized circuit at points following the connection of the supply main or boiler with the said tank. The pressure on the tank in said former construction isthns always inten (1- ed to be equal to or greater than or to slightly exceed that in the supply-pipe ofthe workingcircuit. It has been found in practice that when the pipes forming the supply and return mains of the equalized circuit are laterally extended to a great distance, or when the situation affords but a low working-head, or, in

other words, the supply is vertically but little.

higher than the return-main, the water from the latter is liable to rise into the former and shut off the radiator-feed.

It is the object of this present invention to provide a construction by which this difficulty is obviated; and to this end said invention consists primarily in conducting the steam-supply pipe first to the radiators or to some of the radiators on the circuit, and then to the equalizing-tank, whereby the-pressure in said tank is less than that in the supply-main. The drip or return pipes from the radiators are led. to the main returnpipe, as described in said patcut, so that the said drip or return pipes are I sealed, as formerly; but the variation in the height of the seals is reversed when the radiators are open. Thus in the construction shown in the former patent said seal is raised above the normal water-line of the tank when the radiator is in operation, while in the construc- The conditions obtained are therefore more favorable to active circulation when the available working-head is low. In those situations which require the construction described the depression of the seals at the higher parts of thereturn-maiu sometimes amounts practically drop below the return-main, and to reccivean extension of the radiator return or drip pipe otherwise liable to the difficulty mentioned.

Said device is shown in the drawings, and is hereinaftermore fully set forth and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of a circuit constructed in accordance with my present invention. Fig. 2 is an elevation of a circuit constructed and operating upon the same principle as that of Fig. l, but having, the tank or trap itself located remotely from the boiler. Fig. 3 is a "ertical section of the seal-box for a single radiator return-pipe.

A is a pipe leading from the boiler, and D is acontinuation of said pipe forming the supply-main of the heating apparatus, and usually connected with the pipe A by the valve B.

F is a tank for receiving the water of condensation from the radiators J, and G is the return-main leadingto said tank and connected with the radiators, as shown by the return or drip pipes H. g

E is apipe connecting the supply-main I) with the tank F, as shown.

0 is a discharge-pipeleading from the tank and located or contrived to retain water in said tank to the depth indicated by the horizontal linef.

In Fig. 1 the tank is shown connected with a boiler-feed pump, by which the water of condensation rising above the water-line f is returned to the boiler. In Fig. 2 the tank F is shown in the form of a float-trap, which of course may be of anysize adapted to the size of the apparatus, and will serve both as a sealtank and as a trap. The construction shown in Fig. 2 is more especially intended to illustion here shown it is depressed below said line.

to a destruction of the seal, to obviate which I' have devised a special seal-box contrived to trate the manner of disposing of the water of pipe E may be treated as forming not only an condensation in those situations where it is inconvenient to return the same to the boiler, the tank-trap F being accordingly located at the outer extreme of the circuit and remote from the boiler.

By connecting the tank F with the supplymain D at a point beyond the radiators it is evident that the pressure in said tank will be less than that in the supply-main by the amount due to condensation in said radiators and main, and that when said radiators are in operation the seal in the return or drip pipes therefrom will be depressed, owing to such inequality of pressure. In the situations above described as calling for this construction-such as extended and low basements, or other situations wherein it possible to obtain only small difference of elevation between the supply-main and the tank F-the result obtained is important. In exceedingly long stretches of the supply and return main'the drip-pipe D, Fig. 2, connecting said supply-pipe with the return G,- may be inserted.

hen in the construction shown in Fig. 2 it is difficult or impracticable to obtain the necessary fall in the return-pipe Gr, and at the same time give a sufficient seal to the radiatorreturns discharging into the higher'part of the return-main, those returns having insuflicient seal may be provided with the seal-box G. (Seen in elevation in Fig. 2 and in vertical section in Fig. 3.) Said box consists of the fourway branch G connected with the returnmain G and with the radiator-return H, as shown, and provided on its under side with an opening larger than its upper one, to which is connected the extension G, which drops below a return-main, G. A shoitsection of pipe, II, is inserted in the upper and smaller branch of the four-way G so as to form an extension of the radiator-returns H, reaching downward to near the bottom of the box G. If the parts are properly proportioned. the depression of the seal when theradiator is in operation will obviously not carry the water below the bottom of the return G.

The pipe E, as lettered in Fig. 1, extends from the tank to the remotcst point of the supply-main I), and connects with the vertical drip thereof. The horizontal portion of said equalizing-pipe, but also an extension of the supply-main,and one or more radiators, J, may be connected therewith, as shown in said Fig. 1. The pipe E of Fig. 1, as therein shown, also forms the drip or" the supply-main D; but the latter may, if preferred, be directly connected with the return-main Gr by a continuation indicated by dotted lines, in which case said return will take the drip of the supplymain.

It is understood that the circuit embraced in the balanced or equalized pressure circulation in this, as in the former patent referred to, is independent of the boiler except as a source of steam-supply. It isalso understood that by equalized-pressure circuitis'meant a circoil; in which the direct or outward steampressure is substantially balanced by backpressure on the seals by means of a connection of the seal-tank with the supply-main.

As now appears from the foregoing and from the former patent above cited, the direct and back pressures are not exactly balanced, but that either may exceed the other, giving opposite effects upon the several seals when the radiators are opened for operation.

I claim'as my invention- 1. In a steam heating apparatus, a working sealed circuit independent of the boiler except as a source of steam-supply, and embracing a steam-supply main, 2. condense-water return-main, and a seal-tank or tank-trap receiving the water of condensation from the return-main, said seal-tank or trap being con-' 

